I found a couple of posts around the internet that spoke of a study at McMaster University that showed that hard exercise for a shorter period of time is better than a long workout at a lower level of intensity. I found the article at the Journal of Physiology but you really need to be a scientist to decipher what they have to say.

When it comes to cardio exercise, less appears to be more.

That’s the conclusion of researchers who discovered that extremely short bouts of high-intensity exercise produce the same improvements in muscle health as longer, more moderately paced workout sessions.

In the two-week study, published in this month’s issue of the Journal of Physiology, 16 college-age men, all recreational exercisers, were asked to exercise on stationary bicycles three times a week. One group cycled for 30 seconds all-out, followed by four minutes of recovery, or pedaling at a slower speed while keeping the heart rate somewhat elevated. They repeated that several times for a total of about 20 minutes a day. The other group cycled at a moderate pace for 90 to 120 minutes a day.

At the end of the study, the men’s muscles were tested for an enzyme that’s “an indicator of the muscle’s ability to use oxygen,” says lead author Martin Gibala, associate professor of kinesiology at Canada’s McMaster University. In both groups, the enzyme level increased by about 25% to 30%. He adds, “You can think about that as being able to produce energy more efficiently, being able to go at a faster pace and exercise longer.”
Read the rest of this entry »

Looking to make a change and lose some weight? I have reviewed the top diet on the internet and you can go and read over 200 comments people have made about why this diet has worked well for them, as well as some of the problems.

Tags: cardio equipment, energy, football, hockey, Institute for Hockey Research, Martin Gibala, McMaster University, Michael Bracko, same principles to cardio equipment, sports physiologist and director, sports physiologist and director in Alberta, volleyball

People often choose a celebrity endorsed fad diet in order to lose weight. And if a fad diet is used and endorsed by their favorite celebrities, then they would obviously prefer it over other diets. The Zone Diet is one of those Celebrity endorsed diets with useres like Mekhi Phifer from ER, hockey player Brian Leetch, and Brad Pitt. I will tell you to start that the Zone diet is difficult to follow but the carb to protein to fat levels seem to be quite good for any active person.

Now, as a matter of fact, just because a diet works for your favorite celebrity doesn’t mean that it would work for you too. Different people have different body compositions and what works for one doesn’t necessary work for another! Another thing to note is that the Zone diet is said to be miles apart from a strict vegetarian diet. Considering the fact that experts say that vegetarian diet is the best diet for quick weight loss, and that people who thrive on a vegetarian diet usually remain fit and healthy, you maybe curious as to how the Zone diet works.

So what is Zone diet all about? According to the Zone diet, your meals must consist of 30% fat content, 40% carb content and 30% protein content. With this combination, your insulin level will be balanced. When your insulin level is balanced, you automatically lose weight (since higher levels of insulin trigger the storage of fatty tissues in our body). As you can see, the Zone diet is particularly useful for those who want to get rid of diabetes or any heart-related ailments. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Barry Sears, Brad Pitt, Brian Leetch, diabetes, hockey, hockey player, Mekhi Phifer, vegetarian diet, Zone

A bit of a generic title but i grew up in BC and I can tell you that years ago there were many people in school who along with me ate a ton of junk food and pop for lunch and snacks. Well it seems that British Columbia has banned junk food in schools which is a really great start to showing young people that they need to find an alternative. The touble is that whenever there is a heavy handed method of banning something everyone wil;l want to find a way around it.

Chocolate bars, salt and vinegar chips and ice cold root beers have been expelled from B.C. schools as the government starts the new school year on a health kick.

Education Minister Shirley Bond says a healthy body really does promote a healthy mind, and B.C. schools will be the healthiest in the country.

Junk food has been banned from all public schools and students from kindergarten through to Grade 12 will be required to complete 30 minutes of physical activity a day, or the equivalent of 150 minutes of exercise a week, she said. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: B.C. Teachers' Federation, banned junk food, British Columbia, Canada, chocolate bars, Education Minister, food, food guidelines, health program, hockey, Irene Lanzinger, junk food, junk food ban, minister, Norm Macdonald, president, province-wide school junk food ban, Shirley Bond, sports teams, the Canada Food Guide, USD, Vancouver, vinegar chips

I was listening into a conversation going on around me yesterday about whether it is worth it to work out. I am sure that my workplace is no different then any other where we talk ourselves into and out of things through conversation with others.

Martin and Christina where talking about whether to work out or not. Christina has not used her treadmill since she got it and Martin said that it is tough and boring to use equipment and that there is so much more to do in life then to walk or run on a treadmill.

Neither Christina nor Martin need to lose weight, I have no idea about their fitness level but if you feel OK when you look in the mirror it is hard to workout or rather easy to make an excuse not to workout.

So here goes the rant.

I know that working out is tough, I know that working out takes time and I know that it can be boring or inconvenient so why not hit all of these factors head-on. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: accomplishment, Christina, doing weights, excuse, Fitness Equipment, health benefits, hockey, Martin, soccer, treadmill, unused fitness equipment, workout

Eating before or after a workout is one of the most important determinants to whether you perform at the peak of your ability and recover from the workout as best as possible. There is a lot of science behind exercise and eating and in this article, I found this article in a magazine at a hockey rink a couple of weeks ago and could not believe how great it was, thanks to the Calgary minor Hockey Association we can tell you exactly how to eat. Following this pregame and postgame eating should make your workouts better and your performance better as well.

THE PREGAME MEAL

What you eat each day can have a big effect on how you perform. What you consume right before a game can be critical. Wrong choices can slow you down and even take you out of the game, while right choices can give you that competitive edge. The pregame meal can supply your body with significant amounts of energy, although don’t rely on it to supply you with everything you’re going to need. You’ll want to have eaten the right kinds of food for several days prior to your game to charge up your muscles with glycogen. Your body converts food into glycogen – the key energy source your muscles use during intense physical activity such as hockey. The pre-event meal can help with the following; Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Alberta, competition eating, dehydration, diarrhea, eating exercise, energy, fat dairy products, fatigue, food, food choices, food remaining, hockey, Illinois, key energy, nausea, postgame meal, pregame meal, registered dietitian, Sport Medicine Council of Alberta, sports drinks, sports performance, the Calgary minor Hockey Association, University of Illinois, vomiting

How exciting a final episode of the Biggest Loser last nights show was! I usually hate those last episodes of shows where they just rehash the season that you already watched but this time it was really exciting to watch as the changes to everyone was so dramatic.

———————————————————————————

Looking for last nights finale of Season 4 and my review of it? Then go to the Season 4 Biggest Loser Finale Page

———————————————————————————

There was an also ran division where everyone that did not end up in the final three had a weigh off and the greatest percentage weight loss was the winner of $100,000. The winner of the weigh off with just over a 46% total weight loss was Pete, he lost a total of 185 pounds I believe. The other contestants looked great as well with almost everyone sporting a six pack or close to it and looking absolutely fantastic.

The people that really stuck out in our eyes here at home were; Suzanne who went from pretty pudgy to looking to be in great shape and especially Andrea who looks like a fitness model now even though she had so much trouble losing a lot of weight on the show. Doctor Jeff really seems to fit his new smaller body style well and when they showed a bit of video of him and his four daughters I felt sorry for the guy trying to lose weight with all of those women around. I have tow girls in my house and I couldn’t imagine more, whew The one no show to the final extravaganza was Nick. Nick was pretty cranky and angry when he was on the show and in looking at the attitude changes of all the competitors on the show perhaps he felt that he just did not change enough to fit in.
Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: hockey, junk food, the Biggest Loser, USD, wrestling

The Summer is creeping away here in Calgary. On my ride in this morning the temperature was right at freezing so the nice easy schedule of riding in to work and home will be over sooner than I would hope. Now is the time of year that all of those outdoor activities that keep you in shape so easily are going to come to an end in the northern latitudes.

What will you do about it?

Most people have a bad habit of fluctuation exercise. In the Spring you get sore from exercising outside for the first time since the fall and your body hates you for it, but you endure it and workout through the Summer and in the Fall and Winter get almost no exercise again and have your weight float up a few pounds hoping that you can lose it again next Spring. I will be giving tips all Winter for staying in shape but this is a good chance to look at what you should start thinking about right now.

First prioritize your exercise schedule for the Winter. It may be tougher to work out but of course you can do it if you work out the days and times you will be working out. Most of all be realistic. The best times to workout are early morning before you get caught up with the issues of the day and after work if you have a stable work schedule. If you push dinner out a bit you may be able to either workout right after work before dinner or else get an hour in while watching one of the many great TV shows that eat up our Winter nights.

Next figure out what you want to do this Winter for exercise. A few years ago my family (actually my wife and I, the toddlers had no say in it) bought a good treadmill and exercise bike and then each Fall we go out and replace one of the items and lose a bit on the trade-in but at least have some great new and new to us equipment to keep us interested in the Winter.

Lastly make sure that you have a good mix of exercise. One or two pieces of fitness equipment may not be enough to keep you motivated is make sure you plan on skating, skiing or climbing stairs in an office building to supplement your exercise this Winter. If you can find local fitness events that you can take part in. There are a lot of different leagues in the Winter be they hockey or curling or badminton and volleyball.

One great tip for exercise equipment is to have a running log of your distance. This would be floors for a stair machine or actual miles on a treadmill, bike or elliptical trainer. Using a map it is fun to keep track of the distance that you have covered and you can even try to go city to city with goals in between over the course of the Winter.

Tags: calgary, curling, exercise equipment, Fitness Equipment, hockey, skiing, volleyball